John edwaed mcloughlin



J. MGLOUGHLINL ADJUSTABLE BLOCK FOR STRBTUHING HATS. 1m 388,497.

(No Model.)

Patented Aug. 28,1888.

.zltlorney UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN EDWARD MOLOUGHLIN, OF UTIOA, NEW YORK.

ADJUSTABLE BLOCK FOR STRETCHING HATS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 388,497, dated August 28, 1888.

Application filed April 10, 1888. Serial No. 270,937. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN EDWARD Mo- LOUGHLIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Utica, in the county of Oneida and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Adjustable Blocks for Stretching Hats; and 1 do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appcrtains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to blocks for hats or caps; and it consists in certain details of construction and arrangement of parts more particularly described in the specification, and illustrated and pointed outin the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view. Fig. 2 is a section through the line X X of Fig. 1.

Its object is to provide an adjustable block made in two or more hollow sections adapted to contain steam, hinged together or pivoted to a platform or standard and connected with a steam-supply, whereby a hat or cap placed thereon may be stretched and ironed.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, A represents one section of the block, which is semi-cylindrical in shape and rigidly secured upon a platform or table. A represents a similar section secured at its base to a rod or shaft, H, mounted in bearings O, secured upon the table B, whereby it is capable of being rocked or reciprocated through the medium of a lever, L, on the end of shaft H.

i T represents a curved and slotted arm secured upon the table B near the lever L, and a spur upon the side of said lever projects through the slot z in the arm and is provided with a threaded end, upon which is a thumbscrew, S, for the purpose of securing the lever in any fixed position after rotating shaft H. By means of this lever and shaft H the pivoted section A of the block may be rockedor oscillated backward or forward.

D represents the steam-supply pipe which connects with the interior of the rigid or fixed section A, and E is a flexible branch thereof communicating with the interior of the pivoted section A and connected to the pipe D by thejoint e. An opening, F, is provided in the table B beneath the pivoted section A to permit of the free oscillation of the latter.

Then it is desired to operate my invention, steam is admitted into the interior of the section and the lever L is thrown backward to the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1, when the section A assumes the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2. The hat or cap to be stretched 0r ironed is then drawn over the crown of the block and the lever moved forward, throwing the top of the pivoted section A outward to the position shown in Fig. 2 until the desired tension is obtained, when the lever is secured in place by the set-screws S upon the spur of the lever operating in the slot 13 of the curved arm, and the operation of finishing is then proceeded with.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

1. In an adjustable hat-block, the combination, with a rigid section secured to a platform or table, of a movable section pivoted at its base by means of a horizontal rock-shaft, to which it is rigidly fixed, mounted in bearings upon the table or platform, whereby the upper end of the movable section may be moved inward toward the rigid section for the purpose of contracting the crown of the block, or outward for the purpose of expanding it, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In an adjustable hat-block, the combination, with a hollow rigid section secured upon a table or platform and connected with a steam-supply for the purpose of adapting it to receive steam in its interior, of a movable hollow section, also connected with a steam-supply and rigidly secured at its base to a horizontal rock-shaft mounted in bearings upon the table or platform and provided with a lever, whereby it may be oscillated and the crown of the movable section moved toward or away from the fixed section, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. The combination, in a hat-block, of the fixed section A, secured to a table or platform, the movable section A, secured at its base to a rock-shaft, H, the rock-shaft H, In testimony whereof Iafifix my signaturein mounted in bearings upon the table or platpresence of two witnesses. form the lever L for oscillating same provide with the split and thumb-screw S and JOHN EDWFARD MCLOUGHLIN' 5 the curved slotted arm '1, secured to the ta- Witnesses:

ble, substantially as and for the purpose de- HIRAM E. BREWSTER, scribed.

FRED J. BOWNE. 

